Latest news with #intra-Republican
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
It's Rand Paul and Elon Musk vs. Donald Trump Over the 'Big Beautiful Bill'
The intra-Republican fight over the future of a major tax and borrowing bill intensified on Tuesday, as President Donald Trump lashed out and former White House favorite Elon Musk offered a sharp criticism of the proposal. The whole thing played out, as today's political dramas so often do, in a series of posts on social media. Trump slammed Sen. Rand Paul (R–Ky.) in a Tuesday morning post on Truth Social that accused the senator of having "very little understanding" of the so-called Big Beautiful Bill (BBB), which the House passed last week. The bill would extend the 2017 personal income tax cuts and includes a number of new tax and spending provisions. Trump wrote that the bill is a big "WINNER." He may see it that way, but every independent assessment of the package says it will add at least $3 trillion to the long-term deficit (and potentially as much as $5 trillion). That means the bill is doing the opposite of what Trump vowed to do in March during his speech to Congress, when he promised to balance the budget. The prospect of that increased borrowing is at the root of Paul's objections. In a post on X, Paul seemingly responded to Trump's criticism by showing that he understands exactly what the BBB would do. "The math doesn't add up," Paul wrote. "I'm not supporting a bill that increases the debt by $5 [trillion]. I refuse to support maintaining Biden spending levels." Paul reiterated his view on the bill: He wants to extend the 2017 tax cuts, but in such a way that does not add to the deficit. In his posts on Tuesday, Paul added that "at least 4 of us in the Senate feel this way." Four GOP votes against the bill would be enough to block its passage through the Senate. Musk, who officially departed from his role in the White House last week, jumped into the debate to criticize the bill. "I'm sorry, but I just can't stand it anymore. This massive, outrageous, pork-filled Congressional spending bill is a disgusting abomination," Musk wrote. "Shame on those who voted for it: you know you did wrong. You know it." Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R–La.), who shepherded the BBB through the House last week, told The Hill that Musk was "terribly wrong" to criticize the bill. Other conservatives suggested that Musk was motivated more by the loss of tax credits that benefit Tesla than by genuine concern about the deficit. Musk's motivations might not be pure, but that doesn't mean he's wrong. In a follow-up post on X, he wrote that "Congress is making America bankrupt." No lies detected there—and the BBB will make that situation worse. Musk and Paul are at least living in reality. The White House, meanwhile, has resorted to trying to discredit the independent entities that have scored the bill. On Tuesday, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt accused the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) of engaging in partisan politics by saying the BBB would add to the deficit—echoing a criticism that Johnson made last week. That's a rather absurd allegation, considering the current director of the CBO is Phillip Swagel, a Republican who previously worked in the Bush administration and at the American Enterprise Institute, a conservative think tank. Math is not a conspiracy against Trump. The president and his supporters are free to disagree with the likes of Musk and Paul, but they should stop lying about the budgetary impact of the BBB and should admit that they support higher levels of borrowing. Then we could have an intellectually serious debate over the bill, instead of whatever this is. In the meantime, give credit to Musk and Paul for holding the line on fiscal responsibility. Few of their fellow Republicans are willing to do that these days. The post It's Rand Paul and Elon Musk vs. Donald Trump Over the 'Big Beautiful Bill' appeared first on
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Antirenewable bills die quietly in GOP-controlled Texas Legislature
A slate of bills targeting the Texas renewables industry are now doomed after missing a key deadline in the state House. The bills had become the focus in an intra-Republican battle over the future of Texas energy, and of GOP energy policy writ large — as well as the role of the state in administering markets. The fight in Texas echoed a similar fight in Washington, where red-state senators whose districts have benefited from billions in clean energy investment are now pushing back against a House-passed budget that seeks to eliminate Biden-era tax credits that incentivized that spending. In the Lone Star State, the fight has been an understated victory for the renewables industry. Taken together, the package of bills sought to impose strict limitations on the state's nation-leading renewables program. They were backed by far-right advocacy groups but opposed by significant factions of the state's business lobby. S.B. 819 would have strictly limited where wind and solar could be built. S.B. 388 would have required every new watt of wind or solar to be accompanied by a watt of new gas, despite the shortage of the gas turbines that would make that possible. And S.B. 715 would have required several gigawatts of existing wind and solar to purchase backup gas generation or pay a fine. While all three bills passed the state Senate over the last month, leadership in the House declined to put them on a crucial calendar in time for them to receive a vote before the session ends Monday. Polling from a pro-renewables conservative group suggests restrictions on renewables are broadly unpopular — and growing more so — even among most Texas Republicans. But the bills, two of which are updates of legislation introduced in 2023, are a sign of future political headwinds facing the state's renewables industry — particularly as a wave of new projects in the Texas exurbs, whatever their broad popularity, creates local discontent that antirenewables organizers are mobilizing around. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Hill
28-05-2025
- Business
- The Hill
Anti-renewable bills die quietly in GOP-controlled Texas legislature
A slate of bills targeting the Texas renewables industry are now doomed after missing a key deadline in the state House. The bills had become the focus in an intra-Republican battle over the future of Texas energy, and of GOP energy policy writ large — as well as the role of the state in administering markets. The fight in Texas echoed a similar fight in Washington, where red-state senators whose districts have benefited from billions in clean energy investment are now pushing back against a House budget that seeks to eliminate Biden-era tax credits that incentivized that spending. In the Lone Star State, the fight has been an understated victory for the renewables industry. Taken together, the package of bills sought to impose strict limitations on the state's nation-leading renewables program. They were backed by far-right advocacy groups but opposed by significant factions of the state's business lobby. S.B. 819 would have strictly limited where wind and solar could be built. S.B. 388 would have required every new watt of wind or solar to be accompanied by a watt of new gas, despite the shortage of the gas turbines that would make that possible. And S.B. 715 would have required several gigawatts of existing wind and solar to purchase backup gas generation or pay a fine. While all three bills passed the state Senate over the last month, leadership in the House declined to put them on a crucial calendar in time for them to receive a vote before the session ends on Monday. Polling from a pro-renewables conservative group suggests that restrictions on renewables are broadly unpopular — and growing more so — even among most Texas Republicans. But the bills, two of which are updates of legislation introduced in 2023, are a sign of future political headwinds facing the state's renewables industry — particularly as a wave of new projects in the Texas exurbs, whatever their broad popularity, creates local discontent that anti-renewables organizers are mobilizing around.
